The sixth Tal Memorial event in Moscow was the strongest ever tournament in terms of FIDE ratings. All four players currently ranked over 2800 took part, with all ten players drawn from the world elite. A notable feature of such a heavyweight contest was the high percentage of draws, though the games were mostly hard-fought and entertaining contests. Top seed and favourite, Norway's Magnus Carlsen won his last round game to catch up with Armenia's Levon Aronian and share first place on just 5½/9, half a point ahead of a three-way tie for third.
Today's game is a demonstration of what it takes for one in-form supergrandmaster to beat another. It is Aronian's eighth round win over Russian champion Peter Svidler (playing Black), which took him into the lead.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bf4 ---
An unambitious approach to the Grünfeld Defence compared to the exchange 4 cxd5. Black obtains even chances with an early c7-c5 counter. 4.--- Bg7 5.e3 c5 6.dxc5 Qa5 7.Rc1 dxc4 8.Bxc4 O-O 9.Nf3 Qxc5 10.Bb3 Nc6 11.O-O Qa5 12.h3 Bf5 13.Qe2 Ne4 14.Nxe4 ---
More common is14 Nd5, but neither this nor the text is supposed to promise more than equality. 14.--- Bxe4 15.Rfd1 Qh5 16.Bc2 Bxc2
Prefering to keep the balance rather than exchange on f3 to give White the two bishops in return for broken pawns. White has the tiniest initiative based on slightly better development, which barely subsists through the next phase. 17.Qxc2 Qb5 18.a4 Qb4 19.Ne1 e5 20.Bg3 Rfd8 21.Nd3 Qe7 22.Qc5 Rd6 23.b4 Rad8 24.b5 Rd5 25.Qc2 e4 26.Nf4 Rxd1+ 27.Rxd1 Rxd1+ 28.Qxd1 Nb4 29.Qc1 Bf6
Black must allow the queen to invade the back rank as 29...Qd7? abandons the e-pawn to 30 Qc4 Bf8 31 Qxe4! The exclaim is because the fascinating sequence 31... g5!? 32 Nh5 Qd1+ 33 Kh2 Qxh5 34 Qxb7 picking up both queenside pawns is in White's favour. 30.Qc8+ Kg7 31.Qb8 a6 32.b6! ---
Rejecting the tempting 32 Nxg6!? hxg6 33 Bd6 Qd8! 34 Qxd8 Bxd8 35 Bxb4 Kf6 36 Kf1 Ke5 37 Ke2 Kd5 and the black king will win his pawn back on the queenside. Black's b7 pawn is now a source of discomfort. 32.--- Nc6 33.Qc8 h5 34.Ne2 Nd8 35.Bc7 Qe6 36.Qb8 Qd7?!
Considered by commentators to be too passive. The counter-attacking 36...Qa2! held better chances of a successful defence as 37 Bxd8 Qa1+! 38 Nc1 (38 Kh2?? Be5+) Qxc1+ 39 Kh2 Bxd8 is equal. 37 Nf4?! Qxa4! 38 Bxd8 Qd1+ loses a pawn, so 37 Nd4 Qd5 with a nicely centralised black queen looks to be White's best option. 37.Be5 Ne6
After the game Aronian considered 37...Nc6 better. 38.Nc3 Qc6 39.a5! ---
Cementing in a key asset - the b6 pawn - in preparation for an astonishing sacrifice. 39.--- h4 40.Bxf6+ Kxf6 41.Qh8+ Kf5 42.Qxh4!! Qxc3 43.g4+ Ke5 44.Qh8+ f6 45.Qb8+ Kd5 46.Qxb7+ Qc6 47.Qb8! ---
White's amazing conception, dominating the knight with passed pawns on both wings, had to calculated precisely. Here 47 Qxa6?! Ng5! 48 Qa7 Nf3+ 49 Kg2 Ne1+ leads to a perpetual check and 47 Qxc6?! Kxc6 48 h4 Ng7 holds up the pawns. After the text, White had to see that there is no perpetual after 47...Qc1+!? 48 Kg2 Qd1 49 Qa8+! Kc5 50 b7! Qf3+ 51 Kg1 Qd1+ 52 Kh2 Qf1! 52 Qc8+ Kd5 53 Qd7+ Kc5 54 Qe7+ Kd5 55 Qxf6 defending f2. 47.--- Nc5 48.Qg8+ Qe6 49.Qxg6 Kc4 50.h4 Kd3 51.h5 Ke2 52.h6 Qc4
A doomed counterattack. But after the trickier 52...Nd3!? 53 h7 Qc8 54 Kg2 Ne1+ 55 Kh3! Nf3 56 Qg8! Qc1 57 Kg3 Qg1+ 58 Kf4 the king escapes. 53.h7 Ke1 54.Qxf6 Resigns
Tal Memorial strongest ever
Problem: White to play and mate in 4.
The sixth Tal Memorial event in Moscow was the strongest ever tournament in terms of FIDE ratings. All four players currently ranked over 2800 took part, with all ten players drawn from the world elite. A notable feature of such a heavyweight contest was the high percentage of draws, though the games were mostly hard-fought and entertaining contests. Top seed and favourite, Norway's Magnus Carlsen won his last round game to catch up with Armenia's Levon Aronian and share first place on just 5½/9, half a point ahead of a three-way tie for third.
Today's game is a demonstration of what it takes for one in-form supergrandmaster to beat another. It is Aronian's eighth round win over Russian champion Peter Svidler (playing Black), which took him into the lead.
1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 g6
3.Nc3 d5
4.Bf4 ---
An unambitious approach to the Grünfeld Defence compared to the exchange 4 cxd5. Black obtains even chances with an early c7-c5 counter.
4.--- Bg7
5.e3 c5
6.dxc5 Qa5
7.Rc1 dxc4
8.Bxc4 O-O
9.Nf3 Qxc5
10.Bb3 Nc6
11.O-O Qa5
12.h3 Bf5
13.Qe2 Ne4
14.Nxe4 ---
More common is14 Nd5, but neither this nor the text is supposed to promise more than equality.
14.--- Bxe4
15.Rfd1 Qh5
16.Bc2 Bxc2
Prefering to keep the balance rather than exchange on f3 to give White the two bishops in return for broken pawns. White has the tiniest initiative based on slightly better development, which barely subsists through the next phase.
17.Qxc2 Qb5
18.a4 Qb4
19.Ne1 e5
20.Bg3 Rfd8
21.Nd3 Qe7
22.Qc5 Rd6
23.b4 Rad8
24.b5 Rd5
25.Qc2 e4
26.Nf4 Rxd1+
27.Rxd1 Rxd1+
28.Qxd1 Nb4
29.Qc1 Bf6
Black must allow the queen to invade the back rank as 29...Qd7? abandons the e-pawn to 30 Qc4 Bf8 31 Qxe4! The exclaim is because the fascinating sequence 31... g5!? 32 Nh5 Qd1+ 33 Kh2 Qxh5 34 Qxb7 picking up both queenside pawns is in White's favour.
30.Qc8+ Kg7
31.Qb8 a6
32.b6! ---
Rejecting the tempting 32 Nxg6!? hxg6 33 Bd6 Qd8! 34 Qxd8 Bxd8 35 Bxb4 Kf6 36 Kf1 Ke5 37 Ke2 Kd5 and the black king will win his pawn back on the queenside. Black's b7 pawn is now a source of discomfort.
32.--- Nc6
33.Qc8 h5
34.Ne2 Nd8
35.Bc7 Qe6
36.Qb8 Qd7?!
Considered by commentators to be too passive. The counter-attacking 36...Qa2! held better chances of a successful defence as 37 Bxd8 Qa1+! 38 Nc1 (38 Kh2?? Be5+) Qxc1+ 39 Kh2 Bxd8 is equal. 37 Nf4?! Qxa4! 38 Bxd8 Qd1+ loses a pawn, so 37 Nd4 Qd5 with a nicely centralised black queen looks to be White's best option.
37.Be5 Ne6
After the game Aronian considered 37...Nc6 better.
38.Nc3 Qc6
39.a5! ---
Cementing in a key asset - the b6 pawn - in preparation for an astonishing sacrifice.
39.--- h4
40.Bxf6+ Kxf6
41.Qh8+ Kf5
42.Qxh4!! Qxc3
43.g4+ Ke5
44.Qh8+ f6
45.Qb8+ Kd5
46.Qxb7+ Qc6
47.Qb8! ---
White's amazing conception, dominating the knight with passed pawns on both wings, had to calculated precisely. Here 47 Qxa6?! Ng5! 48 Qa7 Nf3+ 49 Kg2 Ne1+ leads to a perpetual check and 47 Qxc6?! Kxc6 48 h4 Ng7 holds up the pawns. After the text, White had to see that there is no perpetual after 47...Qc1+!? 48 Kg2 Qd1 49 Qa8+! Kc5 50 b7! Qf3+ 51 Kg1 Qd1+ 52 Kh2 Qf1! 52 Qc8+ Kd5 53 Qd7+ Kc5 54 Qe7+ Kd5 55 Qxf6 defending f2.
47.--- Nc5
48.Qg8+ Qe6
49.Qxg6 Kc4
50.h4 Kd3
51.h5 Ke2
52.h6 Qc4
A doomed counterattack. But after the trickier 52...Nd3!? 53 h7 Qc8 54 Kg2 Ne1+ 55 Kh3! Nf3 56 Qg8! Qc1 57 Kg3 Qg1+ 58 Kf4 the king escapes.
53.h7 Ke1
54.Qxf6 Resigns
1-0
Solution: 1 Rg6+! hxg6 (1...Kf7 2 Qxf5+ Qf6 3 Qxf6#) 2 Qxg6+ Kd5 (2...Qf6 3 Qxf6+ Kd5 4 Qe5#) 3 Qxf5+ Qe5 4 Qxe5#.